The invention relates generally to reinforcing structures for mounting of load-bearing items. More specifically, the invention concerns mounting reinforcement structures for motor vehicle accessories, such as rear-view mirrors, to be attached to an outer surface of a door of the vehicle.
Currently available mounting reinforcement structures for accessories such as rear-view mirrors for vehicles suffer many drawbacks. Such current products are fashioned from steel and require welding processes to be attached to the door subassembly with attendant tool, labor and maintenance costs. Additionally, such current reinforcing structures do not have self-locating features, therefore requiring locating tools in order to be properly assembled between the inner and outer panels of a vehicle door. Also, currently available reinforcing structures require a retainer to hold the part in place until assembled in the full door assembly.
Stamped steel mirror reinforcement structures currently lack the necessary rigidity to meet systems performance requirements without incurring the cost of increasing the thickness of either the door sheet metal or that of the mirror housing. Additionally, such steel reinforcements are not corrosion resistant.